Automatic press-feeding device



W. H. SMITH.

AUTOMATIC PRESS FEEDING DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 14, 1919.

3 SHEETSSHEET l- [Ja e/0207' wazzer/zam g z Patented Feb. 17, 1920.

W. H. SMITH.

AUTOMATIC PRESS FEEDING DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY I4. 1919.

1,331,392. Patented Feb. 17,1920.

3 SHEETS-HIEET 2.

W. H. SMITH. AUTOMATIC PRESS FEEDING DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 14. 1919.

1,331,392. I Patented Feb. 17,1920.

3 SHEETSSHEET 3.

IiTED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WALTER H. SMITH, OF PITTSBURGH, FENNSYIFIANIA, ASSIGNOR T0 MILLER SAW-TRIMMER COMPANY, A GCRFL GLRATION OF PENNSYLVANIA.

AUTOMATIC PRESS-FEEDING DEVICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 17, 192( Application filed May 14, 1919. Serial No.297,066.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, \VALTER H. SMITH, a subject of the King of England,residing Pittsburgh, in the county of Allegheny and State ofPennsylvania,have invented certain new and useful Improvements inAutomatic Press-Feeding Devices, of which the following is aspecification.

My invention pertains to automatic feed ing devices for printingpresses, and relates especially to press feeders for attachment to whatare known as job presses, particularly those of the Gordon type.

Where an automatic feeding device is applied to a printing press, themechanism of such feeder has often to be so placed in such a positionthat it would be in the way of an operator attempting to make the pressready, in the usual way, for printing a job. This difficulty may 'beovercome by con structing the feeder in such a manner that it, or a partof it, can be moved out of the way when desired, thus permitting thepressman to effect his make ready in the man ner to which he isaccustomed, the objection to this being that if the feeding parts aremoved laterally extra lateral shop space is needed for the machine,whereas vertical moving is made diflicult by the bulk and weight of theparts. lVith these conditions in view, it is one of the objects of myinvention to provide an automatic feeder, a

portion of which may be swung vertically upward about a hlnge, and toprovide means for compensating for the weight of such portion, thus toenable the swinging operation to be easily accomplished. It is anotherobject of my invention to provide a simple means for the release andreturn of the weight compensating device, so as to facilitate thecomplete removal of the swinging portion when such removal is desired.It is another object of my invention to provide a simple, strong andreliable device for locking the feeding mechanism carried by theswingingportion in proper timing relation when swung out of operativerelation with the press. Another object of my invention lies in theprovision of means for permitting a proper spacing relation to beinsured between the gears of the mechanism carried by the swingingportion and between such-gears and the press gear from which the feedingmechanism is driven. Still other and further objects will appear fromthe following specification and the claims forming part thereof.

I have described, by way of example, in the following specification, andshown in the accompanying drawings, one embodiment of my invention asapplied to a press feeder of the general type forming the subject ofPatent No. 1,145,405 granted'July 6th, 1915, to Edward Cheshire. It isto be understood, however, that my invention may be embodied in otherforms, and that changes may be made in the form described and shown,without exceeding the scope thereof, as defined in the appended claims.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a perspective view showing the hood portion of the feedingdevice swung up to provide for make-ready, handfeeding or the like;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view taken from the opposite side, showingthehood portion in operative relation with the press;

Fig. 3 is a detail perspective view of the means for locking the feedermechanism against movement when such mechanism is swung out of operativeposition;

Fig. 4 is a side view showing the main driving gear of the feedmechanism and the means for adjusting the intermediate gear to provideproper spacing relation; and

Fig. 5 is a section taken on the line 55 of Fig. 4". looking in thedirection of the arrows.

Referring now to the drawings, 6-designates the base of a feeder of thetype disclosed in Letters'Patent No. 1,145,405 above referred to. Thisbase is attached by suitable connecting devices to an existing press andcarries an automatically elevated stock table 7 for supporting the pileof sheets which are to be fed one by one to the press by the feedingmechanism. The feeding mechanism is carried by a hood 3 having a pair ofseparated lugs 9, 10 which embrace between them a pair of lugs 11, 12extending laterally from the base 6. A pin-l3, having a knurled head 14to facilitate grasping, passesthrough alined holes in the In 9, 11, 10,12, thereby'permittingthe hood to beswung up, about the-pin 13 asapivpt, frQm-Jthe pofiiti ll s n i R g -anth m r the entire swingingoperation, since the power exerted by the spring decreases pro-Yportionate'ly tojthe distance-through which the. hood isswung upwardWhen it is-de- I 15 having a spring-pressed plunger 16 ex tendingupwardly therefrom. When the hood 8is'swung upward' som'ewhat beyond itsdead center, a portion '17 thereof strikes uponthe plunger 16, thelatter forming a cushioning device preventing the hood from coming toosuddenly to; rest aga nst the ex -j;

tension 15.

which communicates with the space between the lugs 11 andf12. Extendingaeross the recess 18 is removable'pin 19, upon which rests one end 20 ofa coil spring 21. The

coil spring, 21 surrounds the: pin 13, and

' engages with its: other end 22, in a notch formed in an car 23 whichextends downward'ly from the hood- 8.. The spring21 tends always toraise-the hood about iits pivot,* but is-not'of'sufiicient strength toactually do this It thushas the effect of making the mitll uttl' li lslllg of the hood an easy operation, the manual strength exertedremaining practicallyconstant throughout sired to remove'the hoodtronrthe base, this .may easily be effected by swinging it up to theposition shown in Fig. 1, whereupon the pin 19 can readily bG IQIHOVGd,as the spring istheirund'er little strain. -The spring, of course,becomes inactive upon the pin 19 being taken out; After swinging thehood down again, without the counterbalancing help ofthe spring, the pin13 may be withdrawn and the hood-'i'emov'ed from the base." Then thehood isjreplacedthe spring is re set, w1th the pin 19 beneath its end20. This is readily accomplished when the hood is in the position shownin. Fig. then exerts but little power. V

In order-that assurance may be-had that the timing'relationwith-thepress will be correct when the hood is replaced inoperativeposition after being swung upfor makeready or the like, meansare provided for lockingthemechanism carried by the hood againstmovement as soon as the hood is swung away iromjthe base. This lockingmeansincludes'a bar 24 which is slidably mounted in the hood and isadapted to engage with its end in the teeth of oneof the gears 25 of thefeed mechanism. The bar 241hasfor ned thereon a pair of collars 26between which engages the forked end of onearm 27 of a lever 28. Thelever 28 is pivoted upon a pin 29. carried bythe' ear 23 ofi.the;hood'8and has ashort arm 30 extending substantially at right angles to the arm27; Interp'osedbetween the end of the short arm 30 and the 2 adjacentportion of the hood" 8.1's-fa' spring 31, whichte'nds to 1, as thespring v force the .end of the bar 24: into iengage- I ment with. theteeth of the gear25; An

abutment 32 proje'cts'upward from the base 6 in such aposition as toengage the arm '30 when the. hood is swung down into operaandwithdrawing the bar "2 1 from engagement wlth the. gear 25.

- 7 as the *hood'is: in operative position on the The base 6 18 formedwlth a recess 18 base'f the teed;mechanism can run freely;

So long, ;therefore,

but as soon as a start is made to swing the hood up upon its pivot, thearm 30,*leaving the abiitment 32, is pushed down by the spring 31, theend of the bar 2 1 being thereby forced between the teeth of the gear,25. The feed mech anism'is thuslocked lllPlOPGI" timing relationduringth'e time: it is out of operative position. i

To insure that the feed -mechanism,af ter being swungup, shall be inproperftiining relation witlrthe press itself when replaced,

the hood 8 has. formed thereon a beveled both in the raised and; normalpositions of the hood, it will strike against theteeth of the bull wheelifan attempt is made to move the hood "eXcept'in' onepositionof thepress.

Inthis one position'o'f the press, the lug 33 cept when the feedmechanism is in correct timing relation wlth the PIQSS'ItSGl'f. In

log 33 so placed that, although it is clear of I the teeth of the bullwheel-34 of the" press order to indicate to the operatorwhenthe 1 notch3510f the bnlli wheel has come opposite thelug 33,-a mark 36 is made onone Of-the wheels 370f-the -press, this mark be ing sofplaced that'whenit comesv opposite a finger'38, carriedby the base '6, the parts.

are in correct position for the raising of the h'oodl, T p i In adevicefof this character it" is highly desirable that the parts of thefeeder shall run smoothly; and in accurate relation-with the parts-ofthe press. Any material back.- la'sh in the gears would be likely tocause trouble. "This presents' an importantproblem, especially Where thefeeder is to beat: tached to existing-presses,- the gears of which maybenew or may have becomew orn or even if new, willvary within noticeablelimits. In orderto obviate baek-lash and at the same time permit thefeed mechanism to be swung into and out of operative rela-. tion withits base, I niake the gear 25, which engages with the bull wheel 34, inthe form of an anti back-lash gear, that is, a gear made in two sections25 and 25 which can be adjusted in a circumferential "directionrelatively to each other, thereby taking up anyplay or back-lashfwhiohmight otherwise exi'stbetween the gear 25 and the. bull wheel Sf. Thegear 25 is mounted to r0- tate on a stud '36 having bearing portions 37and 38 fitting in suitable bearings carried by the casing 39 of thehood, the stud being slightly eccentric with respect to said bearingportions. One of'the bearing portions,

37, is formed with a slot it) for receiving a screw driver or the likeand'is adapted to be locked in an; desired position of rotation by meansof a set screw iii. The gear 25 has secured thereto a pinion 4'2 withwhich meshesa l3 carried by a shaft M, which latter shaft constitutes,in effect, the main drive shaft of the feeder.

Supposing that, prior to adjustment, the axis of the stud 36 is in linewith the axis of the bearing portion 3'? and the axis of the shaft ll,then if it be desired to bring the pinion l2 closer to the gear 43, inorder that their pitch lines may coincide, this may be effected byrotating the bearing portion 37 so that the stud 36 is brought into aposition such as is shown in Fig. 4, and thereafter securing it again bymeans of the set 41. This will, of course, bring the gear 25 nearer tothe bull wheel If. it is found that the gear 25 is then too close to thebull-wheel, the bearing portion 37 ma be rotateo into a similar positionto that shown in Fig. but with the axis of the stud 36 above that of thebearing portion 3?, instead of below it as shown. The gear 25 will thenbe farther from the bull-wheel. Any pla existing between the gear andthe bull wheel can be taken up by an adj ment of the anti backashi'nembers 25 and 25 of the gear 25. In the above manner I am enabled toobtain a perfect drive from the bull wheel 34: to the shaft sit, inspite of any variation or wear in the teeth of the bull wheel, orvariation in the spacing of the shaft 44 and stud 36.

By the means above described, I have pro duced a press feeding device,the feeding mechanism of which may be swung up, when it is desired toget at the press for nrilre ready or the like, into a vertical positionwherein it does not intrude upon shop space useful for other purposes.The operation of swinging the feeding mechanism up and down can beeflected with the exertion of little strength, and there is no danger ofthe operator being forced to let the device drop or otherwise treat itroughly. The feeding device cannot be swung either up or back except inone particular position of the press parts, and the feed mechanismbecomes of fectuallv locked, against movement out of proper timing, assoon as it is moved from its operative position. The gearing between thefeeding mechanism and the press is constructed so as to admit of theswinging away of the former and to run smoothly and' evenly, withoutplay or back-lash.

Having thus full descrlbed my sand invention, what I claim as new, anddesire to receive by Letters Patent, is:

1. The combination with a platen press, of a head movably supported withrelation to the press and carrying automatic feeding mechanism,means tocompensate for the weight of the head in movement, and means forreleasing the compensating means and separatingthe head from the press.

2. The combination with a platen press, of a feeder mechanism head, apivot pin connecting the head and press to permit a swinging movement ofthe head with respect to the press, a spring coiled about said pin andhaving one terminal bearing against the head, and removable meansassociated with the press to receive the other terminal of the spring.

8. The combination with a platen press, of a feeder mechanism head, apivot pin connecting the head and press to permit a swinging movement ofthe head with respect to the press, a spring coiled about said pin andhaving one terminal bearing against the head, and a removable pinassociated with the press to support the other terminal of the spring.

4. The combination with a printing press of mechanism for use in feedingsheets thereto, means for connecting said mechansim to said press so asto be movable in a substantially vertical plane into and out ofoperative relation therewith, means for com pensating for the weight ofsaid mechanism during movement, and means for releasing the compensatingmeans and separating the feeding mechanism from the press;

5. In combination, a printing press, an abutment member removablyassociated with said press, mechanism for use in feeding sheets to saidpress, means for hingedly connecting said mechanism to said press so asto be swingable in a substantially vertical plane into and out ofoperative rela tion therewith, and a coil spring engaging with one endagainst said mechanism and with the other end against said removableabutment.

6. In combination, a printing press, mechanism associated with saidpress for use in feeding sheets thereto, and movable into and out ofoperative relation therewith, a bar slidably associated with saidmechanism, means tending to move said bar into engagement with a movingpart of said mechanism thereby to lock said mechanism against movement,and means preventing the operation of said last-named means when saidmechanism is in operative relation with said press.

7. In combination, a printing press, mechanism associated with saidpress for use in feeding sheets thereto and movable into and out ofoperative relation therewith, said mechanism including a gear wheel,abar and out of operative relation therewith, said saidintermediatethereof. V V v '9. In combination, a printing press in-' the operationof said last-named ,means when said mechanism is in operative rela tionwith said press.

' 8. lnc'ombination, a printing press, includ ing agearwheel,and-mechanismfor usein feeding sheets tosaid press'inovable into 7 vnism when the same-is moved to inoperative mechanism including a drivengear, an intermediate gear actuating said driven gear and} disposed toengage said first-named wheel when said mechanism is in operativeposition, and bearing portions for gear eccentric to the axis eluding agear wheel, and mechanism for use in feeding sheets .to said press, saidmechanlsm includinga driven gear, an mtermediate gear actuating saiddriven gear and vdisposed to engage said first-named gear wheel whensaid mechanism is in operative position, said intermediate gear havingtwo sets of teeth circumferentially. ad-

'justable with respect to each other, and bearing portions for saidintermediate centric to the axis thereof. 10.'In'. combination, aprinting press, mechanism associated with said press for use in feedingsheets thereto, and movable into and out of operative relationtherewith, locking means adapted to engage'a movingpart of saidmechanism, and means gear ecpreventing theoperatiOn of said last-namedmeans when said mechanism is in operative relation with said press.

11.'In combination printing press,

with a moving partofthe printin press to insure registration of thecooperatmginecb;

anisms after the feeding mechanism has been-.moved, means forautomatically" l0ck-- ing a 1 moving part of the feeding: mechaposition, and means' between'jthe feeding mechanism and the press torelease the lock operativejposition. g 7

12. In combination, a prlntlng 'press a ing means when'thefeedingmechanism isin feeding head hinged to'the printing press,

a lockcciiperating [with a movablefpart of the feeding head to prevent'movementfof (said partswhen the head is ininoperative position, andintermediatemeans carried by the head to engage a fixed partof the pressto release the lockywhen the feedingimechanism is in operative.position. '13; In combination, a printing press,

feeding mechanism for said press,-jgearing" between said printingpress-and feeding mechanism, including two sets-oftee'th cirvcumferentially adjustable with respect to each other, andbearing'portions for one of said gears eccentric to the axisthereof.

In testimony whereof 'I aflix my signature.

- WALTER H.1SMITH.

lVitnesses: I 1 V V V M. E. MCCARTHY,

J. T. SHERRY. 5

